"Fierce creatures" made m laugh much harder than "Fish called Wanda". Though Fish is funny and has one of my all time favorite lines.

Otto West: Apes don't read philosophy.
Wanda: Yes they do, Otto. They just don't understand it.

I applied the Princess Bride test to some current coworkers and was greatly heartened that at least two of them agreed that it is the most quotable film in history.

Has anyone seen Young Adult? The press I've read on it makes it seem annoying, even if it's in an attempt for annoyance gender parity. Charlize Theron's assertions that mentally healthy adults don't wear Hello Kitty certainly didn't help. Henceforth I will root against her in the Snow White movie.

Oh, who am I kidding? She's way more gorgeous than Kristen Stewart could dream of.

I just got back from seeing Tintin, and I will second what Hec said here:

It doesn't have the verve or rawness or strangeness or originality or odd dramatic beats or curious narrative choices that will stick with me. It was well made. Serviceable.

There were a few glorious moments (read: any time Thomson and Thompson were on-screen--gotta love Frost and Pegg) and some breathtaking visuals, but overall the movie just felt like one damned thing after another. It was entertaining while it lasted, but there was little that stuck to the ribs.

Just watched Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, and I can't decide if my next step is buying the book, seeing it again, or just waiting for the DVD. It is definitely a work that rewards attention, both plotwise and with regards to the performances, with which I have absolutely no complaint. I've never really seen Mark Strong in anything, and he was a knockout. Everyone else was just as good as you'd expect, and Gary Oldman was a beautiful Le Carre style badass.

I really really liked it, but I know I'm not finished with it. It is complicated and subtle and the heavy lifting is up to you (I couldn't work out any way the flashbacks were being signalled, for instance, other than you realising this couldn't be taking place during the main timeline-was there some visual or audio cue I was missing, or was it really all in the narrative?).

Maybe the book first. I read my mother's copy, back in the day.

ita,

there is also the british miniseries which is like 15 hours.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy isn't playing at any of our local theaters. I hope it becomes popular enough to get a wider release.

Sadly, I can't see it getting that popular, because it's not easy. The couple in front of me going to the parking lot didn't get the details: "What was it about, though, really?" "A mole!" "Seriously?"

I have a couple pieces I still need to put together myself. I mean, if Inception is regarded as difficult, at least it had exposition.

For some reason, I saw my last Tom Hardy movie at this same theatre. I think I won't have to drive a whole ten minutes to see his next one.

LeN, I should check Netflix.

sj,

it is supposed to go in wide release on Jan 6

One of the trailers I saw the other night was something I found rather baffling: apparently Madonna made a movie to redeem Wallis Simpson?

By "redeem" I mean, the movie "W.E." appears to characterize the woman I have seen described as, at best, a gold-digging adulterer with unfortunate political affiliations, as a true romantic unfairly tarnished by a cruel world that doesn't understand the True Power of Love.

Turning the sordid into the epic is a challenge only Madonna would take on, I guess?